billy ‘uke’ scott
Tribute to a great performer
An appreciation of the life of Billy 'Uke' Scott is long overdue on this site.
Billy was a honorary member of The George Formby Society and enjoyed
attending the meetings in Blackpool. These words are from the pen of his
friend and also a honorary member, Alan Southworth who knew Billy
probably better than anyone else in the GFS.
Early Life
William Scott was born on 12 March 1923 in Sunderland. In the 1930s, most young
men from that area either worked in the coalmines or in the shipbuilding industry.
But after only a few piano lessons- all his father could afford - Billy found his flair
for music. He became a singer with a school jazz band. During instrumental
choruses, the bandleader gave him a ukulele and said, "Pretend you're playing
this." The moment changed Billy's life. In 1936, he made his variety debut at the
Newcastle Empire playing the piano and the ukulele. Billy could never understand
why people played only chord accompaniment on the uke and set out to prove that
'melody can be played on the ukulele' -one of his well known catchphrases used in
more than 1,000 radio broadcasts.
Lively Personality
His lively personality and brilliant musicianship kept him in big demand on the
Moss Empire circuit appearing with the biggest names in the 40s and 50s- Gracie
Fields, Will Hay and Tommy Trinder. He wrote his own orchestrations and more
than 100 songs for radio, summer shows and pantomime - preferring contemporary
themes such as A Nice Prefabricated Home. I've Got A Girl friend and What Is The
Good Of A Good Girl. He played a starring role (and wrote the music and songs) in
two films, Rainbow Round the Corner in 1943 and A Night of Magic in 1944. In
1952, Billy had the honour of being invited to join the elite band of 180 entertainers
known as The Grand Order of Water Rats (RATS is STAR spelt backwards).
War Years
During the war, Billy did a one-year tour with ENSA. He appeared at theatres
threatened by air raids and also entertained troops overseas- surviving two plane
crashes!
After the war, Billy was busy with summer seasons at Scarborough,
Llandudno and Great Yarmouth, together with Sunday night
celebrity guest appearances at the major holiday camps and
pantomime at Christmas. In spring and autumn, he took
concert parties to Germany to entertain the American forces
and toured the British overseas bases, finishing a brilliant
career in 1963 on Sunday Night at the London Palladium with
Max Bygraves.
Theatrical Agency
Billy then worked as auditions manager for ABC TV, and was
programme assistant on shows such as Comedy Bandbox,
Big Night Out and Holiday Time Parade. He helped along the careers of stars such
as Jimmy Tarbuck and Mike Yarwood. Then he was invited by a Liverpool
businessman to start a theatrical agency. Many up-and-coming entertainers owe a
lot to Billy's involvement in the talent nights held at Liverpool's Broadway Club in
West Derby. These were often visited by Hughie Green looking for acts for his TV
show Opportunity Knocks. In 1972, Billy opened his own agency from his home in
Birkdale and personally managed Tom O'Connor. But the lure of performing proved
too much, and he put the word about that he wanted to work on stage again.
American Appearances
To his surprise he was not forgotten. He played summer seasons, pantomimes,
and one-night stands in vintage form. In 1988, he was invited to the US National
Ukulele Rally in San Antonio, Texas. They wanted someone who could perform
unaccompanied on the wooden uke and Billy was one of the finest exponents in
the world. He appeared on American TV from Houston. Summer seasons and
panto followed, and Billy was happily employed until he retired at 69 years of age.
One of his final appearances was at the Musical Hall at Ilkley in January 2002, in a
charity variety show alongside Jimmy Cricket and the Bachelors.
Later Life
Billy bought a 60ft narrow boat on the Leeds/Liverpool
Canal and spent the next eight idyllic summers cruising
Britain's waterways in his boat Colonel Bogie IV with his
wife Anne, and their two Schnauzer dogs. They spent
the winters moored at Scarisbrick, Southport, near the
family. When angina stopped him from operating the
many lock gates he reluctantly came back on to dry land
and lived quietly for the next four years in Southport.
After 55 years in show business and 58 years of happy
marriage he died after a short spell in hospital on 12 Nov
2004 aged 81He is survived by his wife, three daughters
and a son. Billy was always generous with his time, as
the President of the Ukulele Society of Great Britain, and at the George Formby
Society's main and local branches.
He never lost his enthusiasm for the ukulele and always gave a great
demonstration, ' letting the ukulele speak for itself'. He was our mentor, our idol,
someone who has been there in the fore throughout our life-time and he will be
greatly missed by his family and his many fans worldwide
Alan Southworth 2004
LEWIS CLIFTON
Here you can hear Billy
singing his signature
tune, “I’m Only Singing
To One”.
Below that is a brand
new version of this lovely
song, created by Lewis
Clifton with backing
played by Dickie Speake.
Lewis does a beautiful
job in recreating one of
Billy Uke Scott’s
masterpieces
The Ragtime Mandarin - Billy ‘Uke’ Scott
I’m Only Singing To One - Billy ‘Uke’ Scott
I’m Only Singing To One - Lewis Clifton
Thanks to Lewis Clifton for the colour images, Alan Southworth for
the article and Gerry Mawdsley for the video clip.
Watch Billy in a clip from ‘A Night Of Magic